Johnny Cain, the sensational football star at Sidney Lanier High School in Montgomery, announces he will play at Alabama. Actually, Cain told Tide coaches a few weeks ago about his intentions to compete for the Crimson Tide. Newspaper reporters are claiming Cain is the greatest high school player ever produced in the State of Alabama.

A 9-0 start and dreams of an SEC title and possible national championship ended abruptly with an overtime loss at home to LSU and a regular season ending defeat at Auburn. A 13-10 victory over Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl assuaged some of the wounds, but Crimson Tide fans will always ask, "what if Tyrone Prothro hadn't gotten hurt?"

Prothro, the all-purpose superstar, appeared on the verge of becoming a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate after making an ESPY-winning catch to help beat Southern Miss and then almost single-handedly chomping the Gators of Florida in a 31-3 romp. There was no ecstasy for him or the Tide that October day, though, as he splintered his leg attempting to make a fourth quarter reception in the end zone.

The great Prothro would never play again, and the Tide's high-octane offense with him, sputtered the remainder of the season without him. Despite the lack of offense, the Crimson Tide defense dominated for the most part and propelled the Crimson Tide to its first top-10 finish since 1999. After the bowl game, Alabama was ranked eighth in the final polls.

Besides the impressive win over the Gators, the other high tide moment of the year was the dramatic 6-3 win over Tennessee at Bryant-Denny. Jamie Christensen's last second field goal lifted Alabama to a victory in a bitterly-contested game. Safety Roman Harper probably saved the day minutes earlier when he dislodged the football in the Tennessee end zone for a touchback. Brodie Croyle's long pass to D.J. Hall ultimately set up the game-winner.A 9-0 start and dreams of an SEC title and possible national championship ended abruptly with an overtime loss at home to LSU and a regular season ending defeat at Auburn. A 13-10 victory over Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl assuaged some of the wounds, but Crimson Tide fans will always ask, "what if Tyrone Prothro hadn't gotten hurt?"
Prothro, the all-purpose superstar, appeared on the verge of becoming a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate after making an ESPY-winning catch to help beat Southern Miss and then almost single-handedly chomping the Gators of Florida in a 31-3 romp. There was no ecstasy for him or the Tide that October day, though, as he splintered his leg attempting to make a fourth quarter reception in the end zone.
The great Prothro would never play again, and the Tide's high-octane offense with him, sputtered the remainder of the season without him. Despite the lack of offense, the Crimson Tide defense dominated for the most part and propelled the Crimson Tide to its first top-10 finish since 1999. After the bowl game, Alabama was ranked eighth in the final polls.
Besides the impressive win over the Gators, the other high tide moment of the year was the dramatic 6-3 win over Tennessee at Bryant-Denny. Jamie Christensen's last second field goal lifted Alabama to a victory in a bitterly-contested game. Safety Roman Harper probably saved the day minutes earlier when he dislodged the football in the Tennessee end zone for a touchback. Brodie Croyle's long pass to D.J. Hall ultimately set up the game-winner.

Notes: For the second straight season, Alabama led the SEC in total defense, yielding 255.5 yards per game. DeMeco Ryans became Alabama's first consensus All-American since Chris Samuels in 1999 and also the first SEC recipient of the Ronnie Lott Trophy.
Croyle and Ryans were named the offensive and defensive MVPs of the Cotton Bowl.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, an Alabama native, attended the Tennessee game and flipped the coin to start the afternoon's festivities.